σκιρτάω
skirtáō · G4640 · Greek · 3 occurrences
Meanings
-
to jump for joy, to leap for joy
To leap or jump, as a possible expression of joy and happiness
ExamplesLuke 1:41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Luke 1:44 “For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy.
Luke 6:23 “Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to treat the prophets the same way.
-
to be extremely joyful, to dance for joy
(A figurative extension of meaning of σκιρτάω ‘to jump for joy,’) To be extremely happy, possibly implying in some contexts actually leaping or dancing for joy
ExamplesLuke 6:23 “Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to treat the prophets the same way.
How it’s used In 2 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
3 occurrences in 2 groups
- βρέφοςbaby 2
- Not stated: you (more than one) 1
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- ἐνin+ κοιλίαbelly, internal organs, womb 2
- ἐνin+ ἀγαλλίασιςgladness, joy 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 2 words
- ἅλλομαι hállomai · G242 · to leap, to jump, to bubble up
- Greek verb for leaping or springing motion (Acts 3:8, lame man 'leaping up'; Acts 14:10, 'he leaped up'). Both denote sudden jumping movement, though ἁλλομαι is more general physical leaping while σκιρτάω often carries joyful/emotional connotation.
- ἀγαλλιάω agalliáō · G21 · to be extremely joyful, to be overjoyed, to rejoice greatly
- Greek verb for exuberant rejoicing or jubilation. Where σκιρτάω emphasizes the physical expression of joy through leaping (Luke 1:41, 44; 6:23), ἀγαλλιάω emphasizes the intense emotional state of joy itself, though both occupy the domain of extreme gladness.
In the other Testament 2 words
- רָקַד râqad · H7540 · to dance, to skip, to bound
- Standard Hebrew verb for leaping/skipping motion, commonly used for joyful or energetic jumping (e.g., 2 Sam 6:16, David leaping before the ark). Direct translation equivalent for the physical action of σκιρτάω.
- פָּזַז pâzaz · H6339 · to refine, to be made agile
- Hebrew verb denoting leaping or springing action (Ps 18:29 'I can leap over a wall'). Less frequent than רָקַד but attested as a translation equivalent for energetic jumping motion.
Semantic domains 2 entries
- To jump for joy, to leap for joy15.243
- The verb describes a physical leap prompted by joy. Luke records that when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, “the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:41).
- To be extremely joyful, to dance for joy25.134
- The same verb also describes the emotional state of exuberant joy itself, apart from a specific physical leap. Jesus instructs, “Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven” (Luke 6:23).
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon σκίρτω: 1 aorist ἐσκίρτησα; to leap: Lk 1:41, Lk 1:44; Lk 6:23. (Gen 25:22; Ps 113:4, Ps…
Topical studies with this word 2 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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